This study was designed to describe the experiences of acculturation, acculturative stress, and coping behaviors among Black international students. While research exists on the acculturative and coping experiences of international students in the United States, very few studies have been designed to explicitly examine the experiences of Black international students of sub-Saharan and Caribbean origins. A majority of the existing literature has focused on experiences of Asian and Latin American international students (Malcolm & Mendoza, 2014). This study was intended to provide information about the acculturative experiences of Black international students enrolled at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Interviews were conducted with four focus groups, each comprising three participants. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed using an interpretive phenomenological approach, and themes were generated from the interviews. The themes that emerged shed light on experiences related to acculturative stress, anti-Black and anti-immigrant discrimination, and adjusting to a new academic environment. Themes also highlighted several ways that Black international students coped with these experiences (e.g., talking to other international students, keeping in contact with family in their home country, and relying on a faith community). Results from this study will inform future research on how Black international students learn race within the U.S context, how geographical location influences the acculturative experiences of Black international students, and the interactions between Black immigrant communities and African American communities. Results of this study could also be used to develop diversity trainings for university staff and community members, and to develop social programs specifically for Black international

The Department of Social Development introduced the Community Shepherds life skills Project at two schools in the Ficksburg community, in the Thabo Mofutsanyane district of the Free State in 2007 due to the high rate of crime that occurred in the schools. The project targeted children with a history of criminal behaviour and learners who exhibited other forms of anti-social behaviour, and provided them with life skills that could help them face life challenges. No systematic evaluation of the project has been made since its inception and, therefore, the aim of the study was to investigate the perceived impact of the Community Shepherds Project in reducing crime in schools in the Ficksburg community in the Free State province. To achieve the aim the following objectives were identified: To establish the perceived impact of the Community Shepherds Project’s life skills programme on the behaviour and conduct of learners who are participating in the project; to identify factors impacting on the successful implementation of the Community Shepherds project; and to suggest ways of strengthening the Community Shepherds Project. The study population consisted of learners who were members of the Community Shepherds Project in Ficksburg, who had participated in the project since its inception, and their parents. Teachers from the schools participating in the project and the police in Ficksburg constituted the key informants. The sample included 15 learners who were participating in the project who had been arrested for committing different offences and who displayed anti-social behaviour at home and in school, their 12 parents and 4 key informants from the police and the schools. A qualitative research design was used to collect data from the participants in order to obtain in-depth information concerning the perceived impact of the life skills programme on the behaviour and conduct of learners who participated in the programme. Different semi-structured interview schedules were administered to the learners, their parents and the key informants. The findings reveal that the perceptions of the respondents was that the life skills programme had an impact on the behaviour of learners because the life skills that they had gained from the programme helped them to stop committing the offences that they used to commit. The life skills also helped them to stop displaying the anti-social behaviour that they used to exhibit. 2 The findings revealed that the factors that contributed to the success of the project included the approaches that the facilitators used to run the project, like motivating the learners in everything that they did, and the cooperation between the facilitators, the school and the parents. The findings also reveal that the good team work that occurred between the learners, support from the parents, as well as support from the Department of Social Development, all contributed to the success of the project. The suggested ways of strengthening the Community Shepherds Project were that the project should be implemented in all schools in the community, including the primary and multiracial schools. It was also suggested that the project should include all youths in the community. The final suggestion was that the project should include all stakeholders in the community. The life skill projects should target unemployed youths in the communities so that they can gain skills that can help them become self-employed. The study also recommends that the life skills project should be implemented in all schools in South Africa to provide learners with life skills that can help them to face life challenges. Learners who have been involved in criminal activities should not be the only ones who are taught life skills – all learners should have the same opportunity.

Despite its economic growth, South Africa continues to face social challenges such as inequality, unemployment and poverty. In response to these challenges, the South African government has instituted a number of intervention strategies which include the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP). The aim of this research study was to explore the perceptions of stakeholders regarding the contributions made by the EPWP towards alleviating the above mentioned social challenges. Their perceptions about the challenges and opportunities to improve the programme were also explored. An exploratory-descriptive approach rooted within a qualitative paradigm was used in the study and the participants were selected using purposive-convenient sampling method. The sample consisted of fourteen participants of whom four were EPWP managers and ten EPWP beneficiaries. Data was collected through semi-structured interview schedules and analysed using the thematic content analysis. The findings of the study indicated that the Expanded Publics Works Programme (EPWP) is contributing to social development not only of the beneficiaries of the programme, but also of communities in which the EPWP projects are being implemented. The EPWP projects have enabled beneficiaries to earn a salary in the form of stipends, acquire and perfect skills such as plumbing, and to gain work experience. The stipend, though minimum, is helping them meet their basic needs while skills development improve their chances of getting better and more permanent jobs and to be self-employed. However, challenges such as failure to accommodate people living with disabilities and lack of skills training in some of the EPWP projects are curtailing the programme’s effectiveness.

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has gained increased use in the construction industry in recent years. ICT brings many benefits to an organisation including improving the way information is sourced, manipulated and utilised to increase the efficiency of business processes and improve a company’s productivity. This research demonstrates that while ICT has a role to play in the construction industry, its exploitation by SMEs in South Africa still needs development as they focus on simpler forms of ICT such as mobile phones and landlines, but not advanced solutions such as Enterprise Resource Planning systems and CAD. Furthermore, one of the major challenges identified in this research is the issue of poor ICT skills and the lack of information on available ICT solutions. The government and the private sector have a role to play in ensuring that requisite ICT skills are developed and improved in the sector.

Thesis advisor: Jacqueline V. Lerner / The current study examines the development of social skills in delinquent adolescents in the context of the care they receive in a residential treatment facility (RTF). Reviews of prevention and intervention programs for delinquency have provided support for parent training and child social skills training as the most promising approaches to treatment. However, for adolescents in an RTF, their primary parental figures have become the care workers with whom they are placed. Based on their caregiving behaviors, these workers could provide an environment that counteracts or exacerbates the effects of the residents' prior experiences. Therefore, three major factors that may influence the social skills outcomes of adjudicated youth will be examined: (1) the prior effect of family life, (2) the current effect of youth workers, and (3) the possible interaction between (1) and (2). Using a sample of 82 delinquent adolescents (aged 13-18 years old at entry) and 41 of their caregivers from a RTF, OLS regression models indicate that several factors at the individual level and in the treatment milieu are important to consider when addressing social skills development for delinquent youth. At the individual level, adolescents identified as early-onset delinquents entered treatment with lower social skills, but also experienced the greatest improvement in these skills while in treatment. In addition, older youth and youth from larger households entered treatment with higher levels of initial social skills on average. When considering the behaviors of care workers, two caregiving measures were surprisingly associated with positive social skills growth - caregiver psychological control and attributions of internality and controllability. The unexpected relationships between caregiving and positive development are discussed with an emphasis on the unique characteristics and context of the present sample. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology.

The Ministry of Education in Malawi introduced Life skills Education program with the intention to empower children with appropriate information and skills to deal with social and health problems affecting the nation including the fight against HIV infections. This study investigates factors affecting the implementation of the Life skills programme in four schools in the Zomba District, Malawi. A curriculum is not implemented within a contextual vacuum. I draw on Cornbleth‟s (1990) notions of the structural and social contexts to study the contexts of the school organisation, classroom environment and social-economic-political context in which the curriculum is implemented. Within this framework, I use Whitaker‟s(1993) identification of key role players in curriculum implementation, to consider the specific ways in which teachers, learners, principals, district officials and the community affect the implementation of this curriculum within the schools I chose to study. Findings suggest that the implementation of Life skills is constrained by a variety of social and structural contextual factors. Some of the crucial factors hampering the teaching of Life skills are the poor conditions under which teachers are working. Teachers are paid very little salaries and this affects their motivation to teaching making some of these teachers giving most attention to what they perceive as priority subjects only such as Maths and Languages at the expense of Life skills. The cascade model of training leaves the responsibility of training Life skills teachers to school principals who are not subject specialists. This adds to their already highly pressured roles in terms of managing their schools, resources and learners. The training of teachers in life skills curriculum involves two days of training. This short duration of the training is not sufficient to develop understanding of content and empower teachers to mediate sensitive topics with 3 confidence. This model of training also undermines professional responsibility of each teacher to empower themselves to become subject experts in the subjects they teach. The inaccessible language used within the Teachers‟ Guide contributes to the omission of areas of the curriculum by teachers who struggle to understand and teach certain topics. The case study shows that hunger experienced by learners affects their concentration in class and leads to frequent absences. It has been found that the Life skills curriculum is not supported by all sectors of the community. Certain teachers and their principals found a clash between rural communities‟ cultural beliefs and the Life skills programme. The prevalence of HIV/AIDS affects both the teachers of Life skills and their learners resulting in teachers feeling uncomfortable and reluctant to teach that which affect them and their learners. Some teachers believe that it is inappropriate to teach sexual matters to children of this age. This results in the teachers omitting the very issues that the Life skills curriculum has sought to address. Given these issues, the research finds significant challenges facing the implementation of the Life skills curriculum in Malawi and based on the findings, recommendations are made for improvement of the implementation of the Life skills program.

The study documented three case studies of primary school aged children with Down Syndrome attending ordinary public schools in Gauteng province, South Africa by employing an adapted ecosystemic model (Donald, Lazarus & Lolwana, 2002). Triangulation and content analysis was employed to analyse the data obtained from a parent questionnaire; parent, teacher and teaching assistant interviews; documented reports; school observations; an educator rating scale; a speech-language assessment and audiological screening. The study found that inclusive education had been successful for the participating children. Their communicative impairments impacted on the domains of communication, academic skills and socialization in the inclusive school context and had the greatest influence on their functioning in the ordinary school. The unique perceptions, attitudes and experiences of the children’s parents and educators were found to have a profound impact on the inclusive education process. The study found that systemic factors influencing inclusive education within the South African context acted as barriers and challenges to the successful inclusive education of the children and that their parents were the most influential and contributing force to the success of the process. Paramount implications for the systems and subsystems involved in the inclusive education process, clinical practice of Speech-Language Pathology and for the advancement of theory and research are discussed. A valuable proposed inclusive education process for the learner with Down Syndrome in the South African context is set out.

Faculty of Information Systems School of Economic and Business Sciences 9406128v georgia.sirinidis@fnbcorporate.co.za / Interpersonal Conflict is a neglected topic in Information System Development (ISD). While deemed important, few ISD studies have examined interpersonal conflict, the management of this conflict, or the impact this conflict has on project outcomes. Research in this field has revealed that conflict between different user groups within the systems development team is considered to be a significant threat to the success of a project. Failed systems have been attributed to resistance to system change, political issues that arise as a result of the system change and poor qua lity of teamwork between users and technical staff, analysts, programmers and other IS professionals and cultural differences. Better methods of systems analysis and design are thus needed to ensure appropriate, feasible and acceptable programs and applications and it is therefore with this intention, that this dissertation is submitted: to consider organisational behavioural means, in particular the importance of negotiating within the Systems Development process, to improve systems development. There were multiple objectives to this dissertation. These were: · to investigate whether system development is currently experienced as a process of conflict · to ascertain which roles experience a greater degree of conflict · to ascertain which systems development life cycle (SDLC) and which methodologies experience a greater degree of conflict · to assess whether negotiating skills vary across the different roles within the SDLC, to assess whether negotiating skills vary across SDLC methodologies · to determine whether the interest to improve negotiating skills varies within the SDLC · to evaluate the importance attached to negotiating skills in the SDLC · to assess whether the acceptance of the proposed negotiating framework for systems development varies within the SDLC · to examine what factors play a role in the acceptance of the proposed frameworks and · to assess whether the proposed framework will improve systems delivery. ii The reach of the research was limited to organisations in Southern Africa. These organisations were either large software development houses, or small IT departments within organisations, which specialised in developing either outsourced systems or in- house systems. Selfadministered questionnaires were mailed out to system development teams in South Africa, of varying industries and a total sample of one hundred and fifty five respondents replied. A quantitative approach was adopted to analyse the data. The results of the research show that minimal conflict is currently experienced in the SDLC and respondents across all roles and methodologies feel they possess negotiation skills to handle the conflict. The majority of the sample favourably accepted the proposed framework. Some roles attached more importance to the need for negotiating skills in their line of work, and paid more attention to improving their negotiating skills than others.

Objetivo: Verificar a influência da realização da faringoplastia nos aspectos psicossociais dos indivíduos com fissura labiopalatina. Local: setor de Psicologia do HRAC/USP. Participantes: 13 pacientes, de ambos os gêneros, com idades a partir de 15 anos, com indicação cirúrgica para a faringoplastia Material: Entrevistas Psicológicas Pré e Pós-Cirúrgicas e o Inventário de Habilidades Sociais (IHS - Del Prette 2001) Procedimento: O paciente foi convidado a participar do estudo, respondendo a Entrevista Psicológica Pré-Cirúrgica e o Inventário de Habilidades Sociais. Transcorrido o período de três meses a um ano após a realização da cirurgia, o mesmo paciente respondeu à Entrevista Psicológica Pós-Cirúrgica e novamente ao Inventário de Habilidades Sociais. Resultados: Após a realização da cirurgia, a freqüência em fonoterapia aumentou e houve melhora na ressonância e inteligibilidade da fala. A avaliação da fala foi mais positiva e a melhora da fala com a realização da faringoplastia interferiu de forma positiva sobre os aspectos psicossociais. Os pacientes tinham conhecimento sobre a cirurgia e sabiam para que ela servia, deixando a decisão de sua realização para o profissional do hospital. A expectativa foi de melhora da fala e foi verificado um alto índice de satisfação com o resultado da cirurgia. Os pacientes relataram mais melhoras no aspecto pessoal e profissional e colocaram o surgimento de complicações respiratórias. As habilidades sociais relativas ao escore total melhoraram. Conclusão: A faringoplastia tem influência positiva sobre os aspectos psicossociais de indivíduos com fissura labiopalatina. / Objective: To verify the influence of the pharyngoplasty accomplishment in the psychosocial aspects of the individuals with cleft lip and/or palate. Place: Psychology sector of the HRAC/USP Participants: 13 patients, of both sex, with ages from 15 years or older, surgical indication for the haryngoplasty. Material: Psychological Interviews Before and After Surgery and the Inventory of Social Skills (IHS - Del Prette 2001). Procedure: The patient was invited to participate of the study, answering the Psychological Interview Before Surgery and the Inventory of Social Skills. After a period of three months to one year post surgery, the same patient answered to the Psychological Interview After Surgery and again to the Inventory of Social Skills. Results: After the surgery, the frequency in phonotherapy increased and had improvement of the speech resonance and intelligibility. The speech evaluation was more positive and the speech improvement with the pharyngoplasty accomplishment intervened on a positive way of the psychosocial aspects. The patients had knowledge on the surgery and knew that it was usefull, leaving the decision of its accomplishment for the hospital professional. The expectation was of the improvement of speech it was verified a high index of satisfaction with the surgery result. The patients had told more improvements in the personal and professional aspects and also related the appearance of respiratory complications. The social skills relating to the total score had improved. Conclusion: The pharyngoplasty has positive influence on the psychosocial aspects of individuals with cleft lip and/or palate.

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar como o desempenho motor de crianças com Transtorno do Déficit de Atenção e Hiperatividade (TDAH) pode ser afetado pela coocorrência do Transtorno do Desenvolvimento da Coordenação (TDC). Embora a relação entre ambos os transtornos tenha sido reconhecida há vários anos, alguns aspectos relativos a essa associação permanecem incertos. Alguns estudos têm atribuído as falhas na competência motora à distração e à impulsividade, enquanto outros têm referido as dificuldades motoras no TDAH, como uma consequência da comorbidade com o TDC. Método: Inicialmente, 283 crianças com idade entre seis e dez anos participaram deste estudo. Após uma etapa de rastreio dos sintomas de TDAH pelo questionário SNAP-IV, respondido pelos pais e professores, e pela avaliação por meio da Movement Battery Assessment for Children, segunda edição, 27 crianças foram então divididas em dois grupos, TDAH (14) e TDAH/TDC (13). A Escala de Desenvolvimento Motor foi utilizada para avaliar a motricidade global e fina, equilíbrio, esquema corporal, organização espacial e temporal. Resultados: Ambos os grupos demonstraram risco para atraso no desenvolvimento. Os testes revelaram diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre os grupos TDAH e TDAH/TDC nos quocientes motores de motricidade fina (p = 0,04) e equilíbrio (p = 0,02). Discussão: O presente estudo reforça que o TDAH pode apresentar dificuldades motoras, mesmo quando o TDC não está coocorrendo. Os resultados também sugerem dificuldades específicas de motricidade fina e equilíbrio para aqueles com TDAH e TDC. Esses achados podem aumentar a compreensão desta relação e esclarecer quais problemas são intrínsecos ao TDAH e como a coocorrência de TDC pode afetar o desempenho motor destas crianças / The aim of this study was to analyze how the motor performance of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) may be affected by the co-occurrence with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD). Although the relationship between both disorders has been recognized for several years, some aspects regarding its association remain unclear. Some studies have attributed the lack of motor competence to distractibility and impulsiveness, and others have associated the motor difficulties in ADHD as a consequence of the comorbidity with DCD. Method: Initially, 283 children aged six to ten years participated in this study. After being screened by SNAP-IV parent and teacher rating scale and the Movement Assessment Battery for Children second edition, 27 children were then divided in two groups, ADHD (14) and ADHD/DCD (13). Motor Development Scale was used to assess global and fine motricity, balance, body scheme, and spatial and temporal organization. Results: Both groups demonstrated a risk for delayed development. Between-group testing revealed statistically significant differences between the ADHD and ADHD/DCD groups for fine motricity (p=0.04) and balance (p=0.02) motor quotients. Discussion: The current study reinforces that ADHD may have motor difficulties, even when DCD is not co-occurring. The results also suggested particular difficulties in fine motricity and balance for those with ADHD and DCD. These findings may increase the understanding of this relationship and clarify what problems are intrinsic to ADHD and how the co-occurrence of DCD may affect the motor performance in these children